Non-raveling spreading mop construction



March 11, 1958 'r.'v. Moss 2,325,914

' NON-RAVELING SPREADING MOP CONSTRUCTION FiledJuly 24, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet l I INVENTOR. THERON V. M056 MZZLJMJ A T'TOENEY6 T. v. Moss March 11, 19.58

NON-RAVELING SPREADING MOP CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 24, 1953 IN V EN TOR.

w 0 M M m m QM ATT RNEYS.

United States Patent NON-RAVELING. SBREADING M02 CONSiIRUGTION.

Theron V. Moss, Shaker Heights, Ohio Application July 24,.19'53, Seriah N01 370 199! 9 Claims. (Cli IS -229) invention relates: as indicated to a novel mcp i construction and moreparticularly to a' mop constructed and arranged for maximum efliciency in moppingfloorsl.

dry andthe like.

In. the past mops have generally compri'sedbundlesxof yarn or. the like secured to. an appropriate: holder, ordinarily on a long handle. In use the individual yarns or; strands tend to become. tangled quickly, to unravel at their" end's,, and eventually to become matted together; Such mops are very ineflicient in their. primary function" of absorbing the maximum amount of'waterpossible from the surface of the demand they tend to disintegrate rapidly once the plies ofthe yarn'become untwisted.

' It is accordingly a principal object of' my invention to provide a mop construction. in which the individual strands or cord's are oriented" llI' a particular manner for maximum floor coverage" and efficiency of water ah.- sorptionaud' also. restrained against undue: untwistiiig iir use."

, A. further object is to provide suchlmop' construction in which the individual cords; will not readily become con fitsedand tangled.

Another: object" is to provide a' mop in". which? the extreme endsof the strands will; be particularly effective as water absorbing means".

Still another' object is to" provide means effective to preventundne" raveling 'and whipping-of theends of-tlie cards or' strands;

Other objects of this invention will appear-as the de scription proceeds.

To the" accomplishment of the foregoing" and related ends; 'said invention thencomprises': the features herein; after" fhlly described" and particularly pointed out" in the claims; the" following descriptiontand" the annexed draw iirg s'et'ting forth in detailcertaini illustrative" embodiments" of thefinvention', thesebeinginditat-i've, however; of but af'ew'of the various ways in; which the principle ofthc invention may he" employed.

In said annexed drawing:

Fig. 1. represents ageneral planview of my new mop, it being understood that the cords or'yarns' extend similarly to either sideof the fabric band securing the same togather;

Eigs..2' and3 are views similar toFigsl on a reduced scale and showing a modified arrangement or: modified designs; or stitching or the like. interconnecting: the" individual strandsin desired manner;

4 is. an 'edgewise view of the: mop assembly 'of Fig. 5 is. an enlarged fragmentary view of severah' adjacent mop tstrands illustrating themanner in whichnthey are secured together in spaced relation;

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic showing of a form of: lock stitch which may suitably be employed for the purpose of thus interconnecting the mop strands; and

Figs. 7-11 inclusive illustrate further modifications of my new mop construction.

Referring now more particularly to said drawing, the

mop ofmy' invention may conveniently he produced by unreeling appropriate stranded material such as long fiher bleached h'emp'yarn or cord, for example, from a supply thereof and securing wide fabric bands such as 1 there about at spaced intervals; by means" of. stitching 21 The stranded material may then be' severed midway between such fabric bands I. to provide the mop, elementsas generallyillustrated' in" Figs: 1-4 inclusive comprisihgsu'ch." central fabric hands-1 with the bundleof stranded mate rial"se'veral" layers thi'clc retained therein. Such stranded materialS may be fanned out in accordance with'my invention until the extreme endportions'thereof' are, only onelayer thick and 'the" cords or yarns are spaced one from the next as shown in Fig; 5. Such co'rd's or yarns are then" stitched together in. such spaced relationship preferahly' with nylon thread 4', utilizing; a lock stitch suchas-that illustrated in Fig. 6, for example;- SWthafil. the: stitching should later be Broken in use it will not unravel to release adjacent cords. Figs. 2 and 3 show similari arrangements wherein additional" stitching 5; 6

andTmay 'be utilizediif desired: Such stitching 4 may prevents raveling of the end portions.

be' doubled hy'also stitching, from the other sideof the mop, but usuallyt a single pass" of the sewing machine will sufiice.

Itwill be appreciated" that the fabric band Isecuring the hunched-mop strands together-is moreor less conventional and the particular means for thus securing the mop material in agenerally flattened hunched com ditiorr does not constitute apart of the present'invention;

The-stitching 4=not=only serves to-maihtain'the'oriented arrangement of the individual cords oryarns; but also Such stitching may, for example; be located approximately Zineh'es' from the ends of" the cords oryarns' when the" latterex tend approximately 13* inches from" the fabric-"band" 1. By employing nylon thread for such stitching; thelikeli hood of snapping the same should themop be; caught uponsome obstru'ctionisv much. reduced The stitching 5; when employed; assists in maintaining the desired relationship of the cords, such stitching Being Ioc'at'ed approximately midway between stitching-4 andifabric' hand 1.- The additional optionalstitching 6 and 7 (Fig:

' nylon and cotton; or nylon and hemp-=to=afford a supple 3*) arranged in arcs orscallops-in'fronr the sides=of the mop-=fi'1rther assist in: maintaining the-mnp-materia1 in the" illustrated fan-shaped relationship:

When the'user ismoppingthe floor; andmore=particu l'arlyd'r-y mopping" the same; themop will berswun'g so: as to cause the yarns or cords=to spread' 'out ilrthe mztn nare generally indicated in Fig; 1 although of" course when thea.mop is dipped in a bucketiorwrun'g out for exampicxtheend' portions will fold' together; The 2" and Fig." 3: modifications tend'to maintain the fan-shaped; relationship of the cords or yarns to a greater degree t'md fnrther minimize tang-ling of the yarnss My novel mop construction renders feasible the empl'oyment-n of twisted-long fiber'm'oisture absorbing material" such 'as bleached hemp yarn'-' which is st'rong' as well' as highly water absorbent, since the stitching prevents raveling' bacle too far from the ends. Moreover, the-pan tially unraveled end portions of the twisted oordsare particularly water ahsorbent and when fanned out as they are-in accordancewith my invention; each of such cord ends is rendered effective for thistpurpose 'since each will=contact the surfacebeingmoppedi lfurth'er conte'rns plate the inclusion of a relatively small percentage ofi braided nylon cord, or cord com'prising a mixture of mental abrasive action. Such relatively expensive materials may be included in my new mop and their inclusion justified for the reason that they will contact the surface being mopped. In the ordinary mop where the strands are considerably bunched together even toward their outer ends, the inclusion of a small number of special cords therein would ordinarily be without much etfect inasmuch as a number of them would be enclosed within the mop structure and seldom, if ever, contact the surface being mopped.

My new mop construction may afford a spread of two or more times the width of the mop at the central retaining band 1 when such mop is thrown out on the floor, and each strand is allowed sufficient freedom to cover a maximum of floor area. Since the outer surface of each strand is substantially unobstructed by adjacent strands in the outer end portions of the mop, it is afforded the maximum opportunity to absorb water. Maximum floor coverage and maximum effectiveness are thus combined. As best shown in Fig. 5, the individual yarns are separate and spaced apart adjacent their outer ends but connected to each other by a chain of stitching 4. i

The mop swab of Fig. 7 is generally similar to-that of Fig. 1 except that additional lines of stitching Sand 9 maybe included. Fig. 8 shows scalloped stitching 10 and 11 and Fig. 10 comparable crossed stitching 12 and 13. It is usually desired that stitching corresponding generally to stitching 4 be employed in conjunction therewith, however, properly to control the end portions of the yarns or cords. Thus in Fig. 11 there is shown a combination of crossed stitching 14 and 15 and transverse stitching 16 and 17, and in Fig. 9 crossed stitching 18 and 19 and transverse stitching 20 and 21.

The stitching 4 or equivalent is far enough back from the ends of the yarn or cord 3 to permit this portion to be open to pick up water but yet incapable of untwisting far enough to lint off onto the floor. As previously indicated, all stitching, and particularly that near the ends of the yarns, may desirably be of nylon. A small percentage of braided, sewed, twisted or knitted nylon cord may be included for its abrasive action with the more absorbent twisted mop yarn or cord 3.

My new mop is thus inexpensive of construction, permits the employment of preferred materials, and enables the mop strands to spread out over a maximum area with maximum absorbing effect, yet without tangling and with all of the strands maintained in their proper respective relationship. While shown and described as forming two swab portions divided by the central fabric band or equivalent securing means it will be apparent that but a single such swab portion of fan shape may be utilized if desired. It will be appreciated that certain other synthetic plastic strands commercially available other than nylon, such as Orlon and Dacron, may be utilized in forming a small proportion of the mop strands for their abrasive effect, but nylon is ordinarily preferred.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invention may be employed, change being made as regards the details described, provided the features stated in any of the following claims or the equivalent of such be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

1. A mop swab comprising a bundle of a plurality of layers of twisted stranded cords, said bundle being secured together in generally flattened form midway of its ends by a wide fabric band encircling the same and stitched thereto, the individual cords of said mop swab being fanned out to form but a single layer in their end portions withthe latter appreciably spaced apart, and a line of nylon lock stitching interconnecting all such cords in a region spaced a short distance inwardly from the ends of said cords.

2.,A mop construction as defined in claim 1 having an additional similar line of nylon lock stitching interfirst stitching and said encircling fabric band.

3. A mop construction as defined in claim 2 having additional generally arcuate lines of nylon lock stitching extending inwardly from the respective sides of the swab to the longitudinal center line thereof with each line of stitching extending from said encircling fabric band to the ends of the outermost cords.

4. In a mop construction comprising a bundle of absorbent strands secured together in a plurality of layers intermediate their ends, means flexibly interconnecting the outer end portions of the individual strands of said bundle with the end portions of said strands fanned out into a single layer and spaced each from the other.

5. In a mop construction comprising a bundle of absorbent strands secured together in a plurality of layers intermediate their ends, means flexibly interconnecting the outer end portions of the individual strands of said bundle with the end portions of said strands fanned out into a single layer and spaced each from the other, said bundle including a small proportion of strands composed of nylon and cotton.

, 6. In a mop construction comprising a bundle of absorbent strands secured together in a plurality of layers intermediate their ends, means flexibly interconnecting the outer end portions of the individual strands of said bundle with the end portions of said strands fanned out into a Single layer and spaced each from the other, said bundle including a small proportion of less absorbent but more abrasive synthetic plastic strands.

7..In a mop construction comprising a bundle of absorbent strands secured together in a plurality of layers in a region adapted to be secured to a handle, means flexibly interconnecting the outer end portions of the individual strands of said bundle with the end portions of said strands fanned out into a single layer and spaced each from the other.

8. A mop swab comprising a bundle of absorbent strands, means securing said strands together in a plurality of layers in an area remote from a free end of said bundle, and flexible means intermediate said securing means and said free end of said bundle interconnecting the individual strands of said bundle with said strands fanned out into a single layer and spaced each from the other, the free end of said bundle thus comprising a single layer of free strands.

9. A mop swab comprising a bundle of a plurality of layers of twisted stranded cord, said bundle being secured together in a generally flattened form in an area remote from one end of said bundle by a wide fabric band encircling the same and stitched thereto, the individual cords of said mop swab being fanned out to form a single layer with said strands appreciably spaced apart in an area a. short distance toward said fabric band from said end, and a line of nylon lock stitching interconnecting all said cords in said area.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,816,530 Hertzberg July 28, 1931 1,855,400 Krebs Apr. 26, 1932 1,939,433 Iumonville Nov. 21, 1933 1,977,948 McNamara Oct. 23, 1934 2,044,361 McNemanin June 16, 1936 2,153,023 Pattee Apr. 4, 1939 2,239,686 Owens Apr. 29, 1941 2,251,626 Hertzberg Aug. 5, 1941 2,299,951 Gebhart Oct. 27, 1942 

